The area’s recent spate of needed rain showers will, eventually, give way to warmer days, sunshine, and all the summertime rituals local residents have come to enjoy. One of the most welcome summer staples that crops up every year throughout Jersey City and Hoboken are the various farmers markets available nearly every day of the week. All of the markets are home to great Jersey-grown produce and fresh baked goods. Vendors who don’t sell state-grown goodies sell items from nearby farms in New York State or Pennsylvania. There are lots of unique treats to be discovered at the local markets, some of which have already started, some of which will open later this month or in June.

Gourmet greens

Sure, lots of vendors can sell you romaine lettuce and tomatoes. But where do you go when you need a good head of radicchio or some persille? You might be able to find it across the Hudson, but who wants to trek over there every time they need salad makings?

Popular with farmers market regulars and those with gourmet palates, this farm specializes in vegetables and fruit that are somewhat off the beaten path. Here you can discover such unique finds as cabbage beets, which can either be hollowed out and stuffed, or sliced and added to a fresh salad.

_____________Some farmers markets have already opened, others are expected to open within the next several weeks.____________

“I don’t know that my customers are gourmet cooks, but they are enthusiastic cooks,” said Richard Sutton who works at the Andover, N.J.-based farm. “I see the same faces at the market every week. I think people get comfortable with us. They get to know the things we have. And I think they come back because they can’t get the things we have at other places.”

The Hoboken Farmers Market operates two days a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays with the Tuesday market running downtown between Observer Highway and Newark Street from 3 to 7:30 p.m. The uptown market operates Thursdays from 3 to 7:30 p.m. at 13th and Hudson streets. Both markets will begin the first week in June.

For people who can’t get to the established Hoboken Farmers Markets, a new opportunity to buy local produce will make its debut on June 2. For the first time Hoboken will have a Saturday market at 14th and Garden at the Garden Street Mews. This new market will be open 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. each Saturday.

Not just veggies

Lest you think the local markets are limited only to broccoli and lettuce, think again. Most of the local markets feature a broad array of vendors who sell fresh baked goods, fruit, flowers, dairy products, and other items from the farm.

The Riverview Farmers Market in the Jersey City Heights, which opened its 2012 season on Sunday, May 6, this year features a line-up of vendors selling fresh produce and grass-fed meat. Both farmers are offering subscriptions to their own Community-Supported Agriculture programs. The market also includes local vendors offering salsas, olives, pickles, nuts, snacks, and sweets, baked goods, plus work from local artisans. An on-site knife- and scissor-sharpener has also joined this year’s line-up of vendors.

The Riverview Farmers Market, which was launched in summer 2011 in Riverview-Fisk Park at Palisade Avenue and Bowers Street, will be held each Sunday through October from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Jersey City residents who can’t get to the Heights have other opportunities to purchase fresh produce at other markets held elsewhere in the city. The Downtown Jersey City Farmers Market – held on Mondays and Thursdays – and the Journal Square Farmers Market – held on Wednesdays and Fridays – are two terrific old standbys, but there are others held around town. Bon appétit.

Hoboken and Jersey City Farmer’s Markets at-a-glance. Some have opened, some are expected to open soon, but the dates are imprecise, so this is the most up-to-date information available. Check the City of Hoboken website, the market website, or the website of the local neighborhood association where the farmer’s market is located, for exact information on opening dates and days of the week.